Some of the standout — and non-pajama — looks from the 2020 Emmys
With no red carpet and only a handful of nominees showing up (and remotely at that) in advance of Sunday’s virtual Emmy Awards, the full style story didn’t come into focus until well into the telecast — and long after I’d filed my story about the laid-back-luxe-meets-loungewear vibe of the whole affair.
It’s unfortunate because the glamour quotient definitely amped up as the night wore on. Because I wasn’t able to highlight some of the show’s most memorable looks in the moment, I’m circling back now that the entirety of the night is in the rearview mirror.
In the weirdest of times, a weird awards show delivers a strange sort of comfort, not to mention some genuine surprise.
To that end, see below some of our favorite dressed-up looks from the 2020 Emmy Awards.
Zendaya
Zendaya, with the help of stylist Law Roach, managed to pull off not one but two of the evening’s most glamorous looks. Early in the evening, she appeared onscreen in a Christopher John Rogers dress with a black top and a purple skirt that flared dramatically at the hips (purple turned out to be one of the on-trend colors of the evening).
‘Schitt’s Creek’ set Emmy records while ‘Watchmen’ and ‘Succession’ helped lead HBO to a dominant night in a surreal evening that demonstrated how to pull off an awards show during a pandemic.
By the time she was announced as the winner of the award for lead actress in a drama (the youngest in Emmy history), she’d swapped frocks and was wearing a custom Giorgio Armani Privé that paired a black matte weave skirt with powder-pink polka dots with a pearl- and crystal-embroidered black velvet bandeau top.
Kerry Washington
Zendaya wasn’t the only member of the night’s two-look club either. Nominee Kerry Washington (“Little Fires Everywhere”) also teamed with Roach, but she spent part of the evening in a leopard-print Dolce & Gabbana cocktail dress with black beaded fringe accents and part of the evening in a strapless floral Oscar de la Renta gown with a high-low hem and allover floral print.
Cynthia Erivo
Cynthia Erivo brightened up TV screens in a Versace fall and winter 2020 swirly purple and green chiffon mini-dress sparkling with Swarovski crystals. It was exactly the kind of look that had me nostalgic for the pre-pandemic level of red-carpet dressing.
Dan Levy
Thanks to the historic “Schitt’s Creek” Emmy sweep, Dan Levy’s sharp-looking Thom Browne gray flannel jacket and knee-length skirt ensemble got a lot of air time — and ended up being my favorite men’s look of the evening. If fans of the show think they’ve seen it somewhere before, they have — kind of. Levy wore a black tuxedo version of the Thom Browne skirt-suit in the Pop show’s wedding finale episode.
Issa Rae
“Insecure” star and co-creator Issa Rae’s custom Sergio Hudson dress wasn’t over the top, but the curve-hugging silhouette and bright orange hue made the look pop — especially against the background of Inglewood’s SoFi Stadium, where she spent Emmys night with her show’s cast and crew. (For her striking Emmys outfit, Rae turned to her go-to stylist, Jason Rembert.)
Julia Garner
Julia Garner, who took supporting actress in a drama series for her work on “Ozark,” went with a simple, elegant retro look. She wore an ivory satin Chanel dress accessorized with layered strands of pearls and pearl floral headband. It made her a winner in the glamour department as well.
Chanel was also the label of choice for another nominee: Shira Haas, who wore a strapless beaded floral Chanel Haute Couture confection as she beamed into the ceremony from Tel Aviv.
Jennifer Aniston
Another of the Emmy-night looks that proved the simpler-is-better maxim was the vintage Dior black slip dress nominee Jennifer Aniston (“The Morning Show”) wore when she took to the Emmy stage at Staples Center. Like the vintage Dior gown she wore to the SAG Awards in January, this dress hails from the label’s John Galliano era.
Regina King, who won the 2020 Emmy Award for lead actress in a limited series for her performance in HBO’s “Watchmen,” now has four acting Emmys.
Her only accessory was a stunner of a diamond necklace from jewelry designer Neil Lane that Aniston was still wearing later in the evening when she turned up onscreen in a pink floral robe and accompanied by her “Friends” costars Lisa Kudrow and Courteney Cox.
Which technically makes her a third member of the night’s two-look club.
Find out the winners of the 2020 Emmys with our complete list, updating live during Sunday night’s ceremony.
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